When You See a Red Flag During a Jubilee Media Debate, It's Actually Not a Bad Thing

In a world where social media has stripped many folks of the ability to see nuance without launching into a full-scale digital war, Jubilee Media is doing good work. The Los Angeles-based independent production company is behind a few social experiments that actually feel like experiments. Their YouTube channel has almost 10 million subscribers and has dropped more than a thousand videos, the bulk of which encourage people with opposing views to engage in civil conversation with open minds.

One of their more polarizing and popular shows is called Surrounded, which, without any context, sounds quite frightening. Essentially, one person sits in the center of a circle surrounded by a couple dozen people who disagree with a topic of the individual person's choosing. Those on the outside tap in and out in a series of debates. While the discussion is happening in the circle, the folks around them occasionally hold up red flags. What do they mean? Here's what we know.

Although a red flag is usually an indication of bad behavior, particularly when it comes to dating, Jubilee Media uses them on Surrounded for an entirely different reason. When the people in the circle feel as if the debate has come to an end, they will raise their flags which indicates it's time for a new person to enter the discussion arena. Wow, Jubilee Media could be rebranding the red flag.

According to Variety, each episode of Surrounded is roughly two hours in length and is fact-checked by Straight Arrow News, whose mission is to serve the truth. "We want to show what discourse can and should look like," said Jubilee Media founder and CEO Jason Y. Lee. "Sometimes it can be unproductive but other times it can be quite productive and empathetic."

Not all of Jubilee's shows are politically-slanted, but the shift occurred after the 2016 election. Lee told the outlet that he felt "discouraged" by the divisiveness he was witnessing in America. He wanted to move beyond content that was purely feel-good in nature. Instead, Lee was looking for things that were more thought-provoking. "I thought to myself, there’s a much larger opportunity here for us to do a lot of good," he explained.

Leading up to the 2024 election, Lee said he was in conversation with the Presidential candidates regarding a possible appearance on Surrounded. He specifically said both President Donald Trump and former Vice President Kamala Harris were considering taking the hot seat in the circle. While it didn't happen then, he is optimistic about future elections. "By the next election, there should be a presidential debate on YouTube, and Jubilee is the right home for that," said Lee.

It doesn't hurt that Lee was an intern for former President Barack Obama back in 2008, but that doesn't affect how he curates his content. "We try our best to be as unbiased as possible when it comes to the political sphere," he said. Lee credits some of his success to the fact that he doesn't have to deal with the hurdles of Hollywood. "The real promise is digital. It’s not an afterthought or second tier."